Air pollution, noise, and climate change are three of the reasons Surrey Heath Borough Council is objecting to plans to increase weekend flights at Farnborough Airport. The business travel hub has a cap on weekends and is looking to increase that as part of a wider push to get to 50,000 annual flights. The airport has also seen an increase in demand despite only 2.6 people travelling per flight, the February planning committee heard.
The application, part of a neighbouring authority consultation, wants to increase weekend and bank holiday flights from its current limit of 8,900 to 13,500. As it stands there are about 30,000 flights using the airport, which sits 1.5km from the border of Surrey Heath, but it has a limit of 50,000 a year. If the application is approved by neighbouring Rushmoor Borough Council, airport chiefs expect it to reach its capacity by 2033. If it is rejected, that pushes the target date back to 2045.
Officers told the meeting: “The climate change manager has raised doubts about whether projections, which rely on the suggested level of uptake, are sufficiently robust. The council therefore raises objections on the noise, but also on the potential impact on air pollution, potential impact on biodiversity, potential impact on climate change, and that the economic benefits to this borough do not outweigh the harm.”
Councillor David Whitcroft (Liberal Democrat; Mytchett and Deepcut) said the airport was currently turning away weekend flights and felt the weekend slots would be used primarily for wealthy leisure travellers – with the borough paying for the impact. The meeting heard that about 70 per cent of aeroplanes landing at the airport come in over the borough, and that it misses out on any direct economic benefits. He said: “The current level is 8900, and that level has been met. So if this application were to go through, the weekend impact on residents particularly in Mytchett, Deepcut and Bisley would be immediate and dramatic. Weekend flights would go up by 50 per cent. Why does it need to go up on weekends for a business airport designed to relieve traffic from the bigger airports, because it has seen an increase in leisure travel. Should people be able to avoid what they consider to be the inconvenience of mass commercial flying in order to create noise and air pollution simply because they can afford it.”
The plans were universally objected to by all members. The final decision rests with Rushmoor Borough Council at a yet-to-be-set date.
Fly-tipping “running out of control” but major incidents disappear in Epsom and Ewell
27 February 2026
Fly-tipping on an industrial scale is at risk of “running out of control” across England, with organised criminal gangs blamed for dumping tens of thousands of tonnes of rubbish in the countryside and urban areas.
Latest government figures show 52,000 large-scale fly-tipping incidents — involving at least a tipper-lorry load — were recorded by councils in England in 2024-25, up sharply from 31,000 before the pandemic.
Campaigners say the crime has become highly organised, lucrative and relatively low-risk for offenders.
A spokesperson for the Chartered Institute of Waste Management said: “Waste crime is at risk of running out of control across the UK. It is evident that waste crime at all levels continues to cause misery and anxiety for local communities and causes real damage to local environments and local economies. These are crooks and cowboy operators, often organised criminal gangs, deliberately profiting from other’s misery, from polluting our environment and exploiting loopholes in the system.”
The Countryside Alliance said: “Fly-tipping is not just an environmental nuisance — it has become a serious and organised crime issue and rural communities are on the frontline… For them it is low-risk and highly profitable… contributing to a criminal market worth an estimated £1 billion a year.”
Epsom and Ewell large-scale incidents fall to zero
Figures analysed by the Epsom and Ewell Times show a striking local trend.
Epsom and Ewell recorded 30 large fly-tipping incidents in 2019-20, falling to 19 in 2020-21 and 14 in 2021-22. Since then, none have been recorded, with zero incidents reported in 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
This suggests large-scale dumping in the borough has been eliminated — at least in the official statistics — contrasting with rising national totals.
However, smaller fly-tipping incidents, which make up the majority of cases, are recorded separately and remain a persistent issue across the country.
Who deals with fly-tipping locally
Responsibility for tackling fly-tipping is shared between councils and national regulators.
Epsom and Ewell Borough Council is responsible for clearing illegally dumped waste on public land in the borough, investigating incidents and prosecuting offenders. The Council can also issue fixed penalty notices.
The Environment Agency deals with larger, organised or hazardous waste crime, including illegal waste sites operated by criminal gangs.
Private landowners are responsible for removing waste dumped on their own land, though authorities may investigate and prosecute those responsible.
Tough penalties available — but few offenders caught
Fly-tipping is a criminal offence carrying severe penalties. Courts can impose unlimited fines and prison sentences of up to five years. Vehicles used in dumping can be seized and destroyed, and offenders receive a criminal record.
Councils can also issue fixed penalty notices of up to £1,000.
However, enforcement remains limited. Nationally, only 663 fines exceeding £1,000 have been issued since 2019.
One recent major case saw a prolific offender ordered to pay more than £1.2 million following an Environment Agency investigation.
Criminal gangs and fake waste firms driving problem
Experts say organised crime is increasingly behind large-scale fly-tipping. Criminals often pose as legitimate waste clearance companies, charging households and businesses before dumping waste illegally to avoid disposal costs.
The illegal waste market is estimated to be worth around £1 billion a year.
Local improvement but national concern remains
The disappearance of major fly-tipping incidents in Epsom and Ewell will be welcome news locally. But nationally the problem remains serious, with experts warning illegal dumping continues to expand and new sites regularly appearing.
Residents are urged to use only licensed waste carriers and report fly-tipping to their local council.
Those caught face potentially severe consequences — though many offenders still escape justice.
EV charger grants increased as thousands of Surrey drivers without driveways could benefit
27 February 2026
Renters, flat-owners and businesses in Surrey will be able to claim up to £500 towards installing electric vehicle (EV) chargers from April, after the Government increased grants by more than 40% in a bid to accelerate the switch away from petrol and diesel cars.
The Department for Transport says the higher payments could cover almost half the cost of installing a home or workplace charge point, potentially allowing motorists to power their car for as little as 2p per mile using domestic electricity tariffs.
The scheme is particularly relevant to areas such as Epsom and Ewell, where many residents live in flats or terraced housing without private driveways, and where on-street parking remains common.
Up to £500 per charger from April
From 1 April 2026, households in rented accommodation, flat owners, landlords, and businesses will be able to receive grants of up to £500 per charge point, increased from the previous £350 limit. Schools will be eligible for up to £2,000 per socket.
The Government says the grants will run until March 2027 and are intended to remove one of the main barriers to EV ownership — access to convenient and affordable charging at home.
A parallel £25 million scheme is also helping councils install pavement cable channels so residents without driveways can safely connect home chargers across the pavement.
Running cost savings of £1,400 a year claimed
The Department for Transport claims drivers can save up to £1,400 a year in running costs compared with petrol cars if they charge at home on cheaper tariffs. Ministers say more than 55,000 motorists have already received discounts of up to £3,750 off the purchase price of new electric cars through a separate grant scheme.
Nationally, the UK public charging network has expanded rapidly to around 88,500 public charge points, with £600 million allocated to help councils install tens of thousands more.
Transport minister Keir Mather said: “We’re taking action to make EV ownership the affordable choice for everyone — not just those with driveways. Bigger grants mean families, flat owners, renters and small businesses can now install a charger for almost half the usual cost.”
Surrey already seeing rapid EV growth
Surrey has one of the highest rates of electric vehicle ownership in the country, reflecting its relatively high average incomes and commuter population. Department for Transport data shows EV registrations nationally now account for around one in five new car sales, compared with fewer than one in 100 just a decade ago.
However, lack of home charging remains a key obstacle. National surveys show more than half of small businesses say improved charging access would encourage them to switch to electric vehicles.
Local authorities, including Surrey County Council and borough councils such as Epsom and Ewell, are expected to receive further funding over the next three years to expand public charging infrastructure.
Landlords and businesses encouraged to act
The National Residential Landlords Association said almost nine in ten landlords would install charge points if tenants requested them, while the Federation of Small Businesses said improving infrastructure was key to helping firms cut fuel costs and emissions.
The Government has also simplified its charging support schemes, reducing eight different grants to five to make them easier to access.
Ministers say the measures are part of wider plans to prepare for the phase-out of new petrol and diesel car sales, currently scheduled for 2035.
Image: Electric Vehicle Charging Point. Ranjithsiji. Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license
Surrey Uni finds energy-saving 5G features could cut carbon emissions
27 February 2026
An optimal combination of energy-efficient 5G network features – including AI systems that let mobile mast and antenna base stations go into sleep mode when usage is low, and phones that avoid unnecessary background network checks – could help cut indirect carbon emissions across the UK economy by around 25 million tonnes of CO2, suggests new research from the University of Surrey.
The study, published in Resources, Conservation and Recycling, challenges the assumption that 5G will inevitably increase the UK’s energy demand. Instead, researchers show that next-generation network technologies have the potential to reduce emissions across many industries that rely on the digital infrastructure that keeps them online – from finance and IT to transport and construction.
Using UK economic and emissions data, the team established an environmentally extended input–output (EEIO) model tailored specifically to the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector. This allowed them to trace how cutting energy use in 5G can send knock-on effects across 33 industries of the UK economy.
Working in collaboration with Professor Ming Xu from Tsinghua University, researchers looked at 10 emerging technologies – six targeting how base stations operate and four designed to make user devices more energy-efficient. These included AI-driven multi-level sleep modes, which let mobile masts switch off when demand is low, reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS) such as smart panels that redirect radio waves using little power, “cluster-zooming” in cell-free MIMO networks that allow groups of small antennas to expand or shrink coverage so energy is not wasted, and smarter handset signalling.
They found that AI-powered sleep control for base stations and improved control-channel signalling on user devices delivered the most impactful reductions.
Dr Lirong Liu, Associate Professor at Surrey’s Centre for Environment and Sustainability, said:
“Smarter base stations and devices don’t just cut electricity use in telecoms – they reduce indirect emissions in the whole supply chain. The modelling framework allowed us to quantify effects that are usually hidden, especially the indirect emissions linked to electricity use and wider supply chains. It also gave us a clear way to compare different 5G features side by side and identify which combinations deliver the strongest environmental benefits.”
The analysis shows that sectors such as financial services, IT services and computer programming gain some of the largest indirect benefits, reflecting just how much modern industries depend on digital connectivity.
Professor Pei Xiao, Professor of Wireless Communications at Surrey’s Institute for Communication Systems, said:
“Many of these energy-efficient features are already on the engineering roadmap. What this study provides is a clear system-level view of where the biggest carbon wins lie – and why regulators, operators and industry should prioritise them as part of the UK’s net zero transition.”
The research also suggests that to unlock these benefits, 5G policy must extend beyond coverage and speed targets and encourage the adoption of energy-efficient architectures. Measures could include building energy targets into spectrum licenses that mobile operators need to use 5G frequencies, incentives for low-power network design and making sure 5G research supports the UK’s broader net zero goals.
Old style 1980s rolling stock that had been taken out of service to much fanfare, including a huge ticket-only retirement party, are still being used to cover shortages across South Western Railways services.
The train operator made a big song and dance about the retirement of its old iconic Class 455 trains, even charging £45 a ticket for its supposed last ever journey – with the money going to charity.
The LDRS understands old rolling stock is still being used to cover shortfall when the new trains are unable to get off the blocks, notably on the Hampton Court to Waterloo route.
In December last year some 9,000 enthusiasts tried to buy tickets for the 400 spaces on the celebrated final service from Waterloo. Demand was so high a second train was put on. The day was supposed to mark the last rides of the Class 455 as they were finally phased out and replaced with modern Class 701 Arterio – the ones with the odd half table ledges.
Thousands gathered to say their goodbyes to the ‘iconic’ SWR trains that have, and continue, to serve Surrey for decades. The ceremony for the ‘red train’ involved a nine-hour round trip from Waterloo across the SWR network.
South Western Railways celebrated with a story titled ‘Train enthusiasts bid farewell to iconic red trains after almost 43 years of service’ – except they are still in service. Among the passengers was social media train fan Francis Bourgeois.
South Western trains said the December ‘farewell’ event was to celebrate the life of the Class 455, first introduced in the 1980s ahead of their removal from timetabled services and that it was always planned to keep some of them back as a contingency.
A spokesperson for SWR said: “The Class 455 fleet of trains was withdrawn from our timetable at the end of 2025. A small number were retained for resilience purposes, to cover any eventuality that may affect the trains we use on our suburban network.”
The 17.54 from Hampton Court to London Waterloo on Thursday January 29 was the old retired train brought back into service (LDRS)
EEBC reports air quality milestone and revised carbon emissions figures
27 February 2026
Epsom & Ewell Borough Council’s Environment Committee has noted a series of climate and air quality updates, including the formal revocation of the Ewell High Street Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) and revised figures showing a reduction in the council’s own operational carbon emissions since 2019/20.
The update was presented to councillors on 20 January as part of the council’s second Climate Change Action Plan, which runs from 2025 to 2029 and sets out measures intended to support the council’s stated aim of reaching carbon neutrality by 2035.
According to the report, the AQMA covering Ewell High Street has now been revoked following sustained improvements in nitrogen dioxide levels. The zone was originally designated in 2007 after pollution levels linked largely to road traffic exceeded national limits. The council acknowledged that while local measures played a role, wider national and regional factors, including vehicle fleet modernisation, also contributed to the improvement.
Alongside the air quality decision, the council reported a revision to its historical carbon emissions baseline after receiving more accurate electricity consumption data for Epsom Town Hall, Bourne Hall and Epsom Playhouse. Full-year data for 2019/20 and 2020/21 had previously been unavailable and earlier figures were based on estimates.
The revised baseline places council operational emissions in 2019/20 at 1,487 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent. For 2024/25, emissions are reported as 1,201 tonnes, representing a reduction of around 19 per cent over the period. Most subsequent years were unchanged by the revision, with the adjustments largely confined to the two earliest years.
The report also listed a number of property and energy efficiency measures undertaken in recent years, including replacement of windows at Bourne Hall, LED lighting upgrades at Epsom Playhouse, and the installation of a 177kWp solar photovoltaic system at the council’s leisure centre. The council estimates that the leisure centre installation alone could save more than 30 tonnes of carbon emissions annually, based on partial-year data.
In addition, councillors were reminded of partnership schemes intended to support residents in reducing household emissions, including advice programmes and grant schemes for heating and energy upgrades.
Chair of the Environment Committee Councillor Liz Frost (RA Woodcote and Langley) said the Climate Change Action Plan was intended to guide long-term changes in how the council operates and delivers services, and highlighted the AQMA revocation as an example of sustained action producing measurable results.
The updated emissions data and air quality decisions form part of the council’s annual monitoring of climate-related activity, which is reported back to councillors each year.
Epsom and Ewell lags Surrey’s recycling front-runners, new tracker shows
27 February 2026
Surrey’s self-assessment – and what sits behind it
A new “Surrey Waste Tracker” published by the Surrey Environment Partnership (SEP) claims Surrey is one of the best performing areas in England for recycling and low landfill. The tracker uses data for the 2023–24 year and compares Surrey County Council with 28 “similar” waste authorities across England.
SEP reports that 54.5% of Surrey’s total household waste is recycled, reused or composted, placing Surrey joint second out of 29 comparable authorities. Surrey households produced around 445kg of rubbish per home, said to be eighth out of 29 and better than an England average of around 511kg. Just 0.2% of Surrey’s household waste went to landfill, compared with an England average of 5.5%, and 85% of Surrey’s waste is processed in the UK rather than exported.
The tracker does not spell out which 28 other authorities Surrey is being measured against, nor does it cite the exact national datasets used for those comparisons.
How independent national data stacks up
Provisional government waste statistics for 2023–24 show that, across England as a whole, the household recycling rate is around 44%. The same official release reports that 5.5% of local authority-collected waste in England was sent to landfill.
Taken together, these independent figures broadly support SEP’s central message: Surrey’s recycling rate is around ten percentage points higher than the England average, Surrey sends a much smaller share of its waste to landfill than the country as a whole, and Surrey households appear to be producing less residual rubbish than the average English household.
However, the 42.3% “England average” recycling figure quoted on the Surrey Waste Tracker is slightly lower than the 44% national rate reported by government, suggesting SEP may be using a different measure or earlier cut of the same data.
Where Epsom and Ewell sits in the Surrey league
The tracker also breaks down performance by each of Surrey’s 11 district and borough councils, including Epsom and Ewell. For each area it publishes annual rubbish per household (in kg), the proportion of household waste recycled, reused or composted, and the proportion of recycling processed within the UK.
On those measures, Epsom and Ewell is a low performer within Surrey, but well behind the best-performing districts.
Recycling rate: Epsom and Ewell recycles, reuses or composts 52.1% of its household waste. This places it ninth out of the 11 Surrey districts and boroughs on the recycling measure, while Surrey Heath leads the county on 58.9%, with Guildford and Tandridge close behind.
Rubbish per household: Epsom and Ewell households produce 402.3kg of rubbish per year. That is better than Elmbridge and Spelthorne, but still ninth out of 11 when ranked from lowest to highest residual waste. Surrey Heath again tops this table with 341.2kg per household.
How much recycling stays in the UK: Only 63.7% of Epsom and Ewell’s collected recycling is processed within the UK, the lowest share in Surrey. Several councils send a much higher proportion of recyclables to UK facilities, including Reigate and Banstead, Guildford and Tandridge.
Surrey district and borough waste league table, 2023–24
Based on the Surrey Waste Tracker’s published data, the picture across the 11 local areas is as follows, ranked by recycling rate from highest to lowest:
Rank (recycling)
District / Borough
Rubbish per household (kg)
Proportion recycled / reused / composted (%)
Proportion of recycling processed in UK (%)
1
Surrey Heath
341.2
58.9
76.8
2
Guildford
347.5
57.9
84.6
3
Tandridge
361.5
57.8
84.2
4
Waverley
350.0
57.0
75.3
5
Mole Valley
362.1
56.4
72.2
6
Woking
348.1
56.4
73.1
7
Elmbridge
407.5
54.2
72.6
8
Reigate and Banstead
381.2
54.2
96.2
9
Epsom and Ewell
402.3
52.1
63.7
10
Runnymede
386.4
46.8
71.5
11
Spelthorne
439.3
44.5
70.7
On this reading, Epsom and Ewell recycles a larger share of its waste than the national average, but less than eight of its ten Surrey neighbours, produces more rubbish per household than most Surrey areas, and sends the smallest proportion of its recycling to UK plants.
Who owns the Surrey Environment Partnership?
The Surrey Waste Tracker is published by the Surrey Environment Partnership, which is a partnership between Surrey County Council and the 11 district and borough councils. SEP is therefore not an external watchdog but a joint project of the councils whose performance it reports on.
The tracker draws on data that councils are legally required to report to central government through the WasteDataFlow system, which the government then uses to produce national statistics. However, it does not identify the 28 “similar areas” Surrey is compared with, nor the criteria for including them, and it does not explicitly reference the government publications from which national averages appear to be taken.
For residents in Epsom and Ewell, the Surrey Waste Tracker offers a useful snapshot of local performance within a strong-performing county, while also raising questions of transparency and comparability. The extent to which the borough can close the gap with Surrey’s recycling leaders, and keep more of its recycling treatment within the UK, is likely to remain a live policy issue for years ahead.
Image: Landfill site in UK by M J Richardson CC BY-SA 2.0
Since publication of the above report the Surrey Environmental Partnership has issued the following helpful clarification:
Unfortunately, there was an error in the number of authorities that we compared Surrey with. The report originally listed that there were 29 similar authorities, when in fact it was 27. This has now been amended on our website – Surrey Environment Partnership – Surrey Waste Tracker. The authorities that Surrey compares to are the other waste disposal authorities in England.
The article also mentions a discrepancy between the figure of 42.3% that we used for England’s recycling rate compared to the figure of 44.0%. Just to clarify that 44.0% is England’s recycling rate for the calendar year of 2023 whereas 42.3% is England’s recycling rate for 2023-24, which is the period that our report covers.
We have made a note to include the above level of detail in Surrey Waste Tracker reports from hereon.
Do you have the bottle for these cold nights?
27 February 2026
With the UK in the midst of a bitter cold snap, many of us are reaching for hot water bottles to help keep warm during the day and through the night.
While hot water bottles are an effective and affordable way to keep warm, in 2024 nearly 1,000 people were admitted to burn units in England and Wales following hot water bottle accidents.
Here, the team at Health and Safety training experts High Speed Training share some practical advice on how to use hot water bottles safely.
Dr Richard Anderson, Head of Learning and Development at High Speed Training, said: “Hot water bottles are a fantastic way to beat the chill, and with energy costs remaining a concern, they are more popular than ever. However, like any household item that uses high heat, they aren’t without risk.”
Check the age
It is recommended that hot water bottles are replaced every two years. The rubber used in their construction can deteriorate over time, making bottles more likely to split or leak.
You can check when a hot water bottle was made by looking for a flower-shaped symbol, known as a ‘daisy wheel’, embossed onto the neck or body of the bottle. The number in the centre shows the year of manufacture, while the twelve surrounding segments represent the months of the year. The number of segments with dots indicates the month the bottle was made.
For example, if the symbol has 25 in the middle and dots in the first six segments, the bottle was manufactured in June 2025. If a segment contains more than one dot, the number of dots in the final filled segment shows which week of the month the bottle was produced.
How to fill and use your hot water bottle safely
Dr Anderson added: “Before filling a hot water bottle, always check it for visible damage or signs of wear and tear. Avoid filling the bottle with boiling water, as this can weaken the internal seams. Allow the water to cool slightly before filling.
“It’s also advisable to only fill the bottle to around two-thirds full. Expel any remaining air before tightening the stopper securely.”
He also advised always using a cover on a hot water bottle to reduce the risk of contact burns, and never sitting or lying on one, as this increases the likelihood of the bottle failing. “When not in use, empty the bottle completely and store it with the stopper removed in a cool, dry place, such as a cupboard.”
Copy provided by High Speed Training
Problem Pavement Parking Powers Promised
27 February 2026
The Government has announced plans to give councils across England new legal powers to tackle pavement parking, following years of concern from disability groups, parents, and local campaigners about blocked pavements forcing people into the road.
In a statement issued on 8 January, the Department for Transport said the changes are intended to make it easier for local authorities to restrict pavement parking across wider areas, rather than relying on street-by-street restrictions that can be slow and complex to introduce.
The Department said blocked pavements create serious barriers for wheelchair users, parents with pushchairs, blind or partially sighted people, and older residents, limiting independence and making everyday journeys less safe. Ministers say the new approach will allow councils to act where pavement parking causes the greatest local problems, while retaining flexibility where limited pavement parking may still be considered acceptable.
Local Transport Minister Lilian Greenwood said clear pavements are essential for people to move around safely and independently, and that councils will be given the power to “crack down on problem pavement parking” while taking account of local conditions. National organisations including Guide Dogs and the RAC welcomed the announcement, calling for consistent enforcement and proportionate use of the new powers.
Surrey County Council: details awaited
Responding to questions from Epsom and Ewell Times, Surrey County Council said it welcomed the announcement but stressed that it is too early to comment on how it might operate in practice.
A Surrey County Council spokesperson said the authority is “looking forward to finding out more about new powers allowing local authorities to tackle antisocial pavement parking,” but added that further detail is needed on what exactly is proposed and what the powers will entail once introduced. The council said it would be happy to revisit the issue once more information is shared by the Department for Transport.
The Government has said that guidance on how councils should use the new powers will be published later in 2026.
Local MP claims campaign success
The announcement was welcomed by Epsom and Ewell MP Helen Maguire, who described it as a significant step forward following sustained local and parliamentary campaigning.
Ms Maguire said she had raised pavement parking repeatedly in Parliament, including through a Westminster Hall debate, an Early Day Motion, written questions to ministers, and local campaigning with residents. She said pavement parking makes streets unsafe and inaccessible, and that no one should be forced into the road when walking to school or the shops.
Following the announcement, the Minister for Local Transport wrote directly to Ms Maguire, thanking her for her advocacy and citing her work in highlighting the challenges caused by pavement parking.
What powers already exist?
At present, pavement parking outside London is not subject to a general nationwide ban. Enforcement relies on a patchwork of existing powers, which can be limited or difficult to apply.
Yellow line parking restrictions, for example, apply from the centre of the carriageway to the highway boundary, which usually includes the pavement. However, these restrictions only apply during the signed controlled hours and do not always prevent vehicles from mounting the pavement if enforcement is not prioritised.
Councils can also act where a vehicle causes an obstruction of the highway, an offence under existing road traffic legislation. In practice, enforcement is often reserved for cases where access is completely blocked, such as preventing wheelchair passage or emergency access. This can leave many partially obstructed pavements unaddressed.
Local authorities may also introduce specific Traffic Regulation Orders banning pavement parking on individual streets or sections of road, but this process can be time-consuming, requires consultation and signage, and is rarely applied borough-wide.
The Government has said the new powers are intended to move away from this piecemeal approach, allowing councils to introduce area-wide pavement parking restrictions more easily, while still permitting exemptions where pavements are wide enough and pedestrian access is not compromised.
What happens next?
The Department for Transport says further guidance will be published later this year, setting out how councils can use the new powers in a proportionate and locally appropriate way. Until then, councils such as Surrey County Council say they are unable to comment on how enforcement might change on the ground.
For residents in Epsom and Ewell, the announcement signals political momentum on an issue that has generated long-standing concern, particularly with food delivery mopeds in the Epsom High Street area, but any practical change to enforcement will depend on the detail of the legislation and how quickly local authorities choose to act once the new framework is in place.
Epsom waste site plans refused after years of noise and disruption complaints
27 February 2026
Plans to retrospectively approve changes at a controversial waste and recycling site near Epsom have been refused, following years of complaints from residents about noise, dust and early-morning lorry movements.
Surrey County Council’s planning committee voted to reject the application for land at the Chalk Pit on College Road, where skip hire firm Skip It Epsom Ltd operates, at a meeting on December 17.
Residents speaking at the meeting and objecting to the scheme online slammed the plans. They described how the site had been “destroying their lives” and making it a misery with constant noise, intruding on their home life and impacting nearby schools. Locals complained that site has not been built according to its planning permission.
The application was not for a brand-new site, but to regularise changes that had already been made to buildings and operations at the former waste transfer station, which was granted permission in 2023 to become a materials recycling facility.
However, councillors were told the development had not been built as approved and crucially, a required drainage system was never installed.
The operator wanted permission to change several conditions attached to the original approval, including:
Buildings being built on a different footprint and with altered materials
A new entrance and staircase
Moving noisy waste-sorting machinery into a different building
Changes to HGV parking and electric vehicle charging points
Officers described most of these changes as relatively minor and, on their own, acceptable even though the site sits in the Green Belt.
So why was it rejected? The refusal came down to one major issue: drainage. Councillors heard that the surface water drainage scheme approved in 2023 had never been installed, and that new assessments now showed a much larger soakaway was needed.
But part of the required drainage system would sit outside the application site, meaning it could not legally be approved or enforced through this planning application.
As a result, officers said an essential planning condition could no longer be met or reimposed, leaving the council with no option but to recommend refusal.
Local residents spoke passionately against the application at the meeting, describing years of disruption since operations ramped up in 2020.
Bernie Muir, local councillor for Epsom, told the committee that the site had been “destroying lives for five years”. She said: “People can’t use their gardens, open windows or work from home […] There are serious mental health impacts from the constant noise.”
More than 170 objections were submitted overall. Residents complained of:
Banging, clanging and crashing from skips being dropped
Heavy lorries arriving as early as 5.30am
Dust, light pollution and breaches of operating hours
Noise carrying across the landscape due to the bowl-shaped chalk pit
Fiona, who lives around 350 metres from the site, said she had no problems for years after moving to the area until operations changed. “On some days the noise I experience in my garden is banging, clanging and repetitive crashing,” she said.
She also raised concerns about drainage, saying the site sits near a protected groundwater zone and the chalk geology is highly porous. “This is an unfixable flaw,” said John Beckett, an Epsom and Ewell borough council member.
Residents’ groups also argued that moving noisy machinery and changing the building entrance had directed sound towards homes that were never properly assessed in earlier reports.
Speaking for the applicant, a representative said she was aware of concerns but claimed the developer had not been invited to some of the multi-agency meetings.
Cllr Tim Hall said he was “surprised” by the claim, given the number of meetings held with residents, agencies and council officers over five years.
The applicant’s agent defended the criticism by describing the chalk pit as a “very busy site” and it is difficult to keep all the workers across the procedures to keep the doors closed and noise down. She also said the early starts referred to residents were “alleged breaches on the site” and the noise could be coming from elsewhere nearby.
Some councillors acknowledged residents’ frustrations, while others pointed out the site has long been industrial. Cllr Ernest Mallett MBE said: “At the end of the day, people bought houses next to an industrial site.” But others felt the problems went beyond normal industrial impact.
The refusal does not shut the site down but it does mean the unauthorised changes cannot be approved. To move forward, the operator would need to submit a new full planning application, including a drainage solution that can be properly assessed and enforced.
The Mayor of Epsom and Ewell meets local climate volunteers
27 February 2026
The Mayor of Epsom & Ewell, Cllr Robert Leach, met with members of the Epsom and Ewell Climate Action Network (EECAN) to hear about the community projects they are mobilising over the next six months, including the borough’s first Library of Things. EECAN, which was marking its first anniversary, was founded by residents concerned about the environmental and social impacts of climate change and has grown steadily into an active network of volunteers leading initiatives that encourage climate-friendly actions, build resilience and support sustainable choices across the borough.
The volunteers explained that the Library of Things will allow residents to borrow items such as DIY tools, gardening equipment, sewing machines, pressure washers and even party or camping gear. For many households, the cost of purchasing these items outright can be prohibitive, and for others it simply isn’t necessary when the item might only be used once or twice a year. EECAN believes the scheme could help cut waste, save families money and encourage the communal sharing of resources.
The project is currently in the planning stage, with the group sourcing donated items and recruiting volunteers ahead of a planned launch in April 2026. During the meeting, Cllr Leach expressed strong support for EECAN’s work, welcomed its potential benefits for local residents, and even signed up as an early supporter while taking an interest in how the project might expand once established.
Past and ongoing EECAN initiatives include November’s successful Bike Amnesty event, which collected around 70 bikes for the Surrey Bike Bank to refurbish and redistribute, and regular Climate Conversations held on the second and fourth Monday of each month. Both projects have attracted increasing interest from residents wanting to learn more about sustainable living and community-driven solutions.
EECAN founder and chair William Ward spoke about the group’s longer-term ambitions, which include expanding outreach, increasing visibility across the borough and eventually achieving official charity registration. Becoming a registered charity would help them access currently unavailable funding streams and deliver larger, more stable projects. In just 12 months the group has grown from seven to 50 volunteers and from two to eight trustees, who are now preparing their application to the Charity Commission.
The meeting concluded with cake-cutting and a discussion about strengthening links between EECAN and the council. The Mayor encouraged the group to continue raising awareness of their activities and said he would share their projects with fellow councillors when appropriate. Volunteers said they hoped the meeting would lead to deeper collaboration and stronger recognition of grassroots environmental initiatives within local decision-making.
